A Different Point of View
by Ultimate Warrior
Summary: This is another one of those ‘what if’ stories. This is what if Remus Lupin had doubts about Sirius Blacks guilt when Harry was younger.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I own nothing at all

Summary: This is another one of those 'what if' stories. This is what if Remus Lupin had doubts about Sirius Blacks guilt when Harry was younger.

Prologue

It was a cold night in the house of Remus Lupin. The werewolf himself was restless, tossing and turning in his bed. He had tried to forget what had happened just over two years ago, but he had found that impossible.

Why? Why did Sirius do it? He had gone over it a million times in his head and nothing he could think of made sense.

There was no logical reason why Sirius would want James, Lily, Harry and Peter dead. Truth be told Sirius was never fond of Peter in the first place, but to give away the location of his best friend, his best friend's wife and his Godson to Voldemort to kill just didn't fathom in the mind of Remus Lupin.

Because of that night Harry was sentence to life with magic hating Muggles, Remus had met the Dursleys only once and knew that they hated magic, and Remus was all alone.

Just as he was drifting off to sleep at around midnight his semi-conscious mind thought of something.

What if, hypothetically speaking of course, what if Sirius was innocent?

No. Of course Sirius was guilty. If he was innocent he would have been found so at his trial.

That was a rather strange thing, he had to admit, Sirius' trial, despite him being a high profile criminal, had not had a single thing written about it in the Prophet. He hadn't been invited to give evidence and neither was Dumbledore. So perhaps there was no trial.

Wait, but if the was no trial then Sirius might be innocent, But how could that be?

Remus was now wide awake as he began to theorise how Sirius might be innocent.

Muggles had seen him murder Peter and had heard Peter say that Sirius had betrayed James and Lily to Voldemort. There were witnesses that saw him murder the muggles as well and Peter had been alive for that...........wait a moment.

It all came back to Peter. He was the only one of the Marauders with a motive. Peter had always been jealous of James' and Sirius' popularity and talent, the same could be said of Peter's feelings toward Remus. He had only really been friends with them in school because they had more power than the others in school except the teachers of course. James, Sirius and Remus had no reason to join Voldemort only Peter did.

James was a strong wizard and had a family who he loved and loved him.

Sirius turned away from that side of his life, he was a strong wizard, he had a good job, a good life and he was like a brother to James.

Remus himself had never been as happy as when his friends had become Animagi to help him during his transformations. He would never even dream of betraying his friends.

Peter was almost a squib as magic went, however he became a Animagi was amazing, he had little power so he sided with those who did, it would be all to easy for Peter to be swayed to Voldemorts side.

Of course! Why hadn't he thought of it before? It wasn't Peter who confronted Sirius but Sirius who confronted Peter. And when Sirius confronted Peter it was not to kill him but to capture him. To get revenge for James and Lily.

And.....and Peter must have cut off his own finger and changed into a rat......framing Sirius of the thing Peter had done.....Remus suddenly felt ill.

He and the world had been fooled into thinking that Sirius was a murderer and a traitor. There was no doubt in Remus mind now, Sirius was innocent.

"I only hope he can forgive me." Remus sighed deeply. I'll have to contact Dumbledore"

End Prologue

Please review and tell me what you think. Please also bear in mind that I only wrote this n the early hours of the morning.


	2. Chapter One

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Summary: Do I really have to repeat myself?

-Chapter One-

Hogwarts was relatively empty, what with it being the start of the Christmas holidays and all, only a few people were around. It was still relative early in the morning, it was only about eight thirty, most of the students that stayed behind wouldn't be up for a few hours.

Albus Dumbledore sat alone in his office. He always seemed to be up early, even after a long nights work. Fawkes snored quietly on his perch as Albus read through a few files whiles drinking his hot chocolate. The phoenix was looking dreadful, it was near a regeneration stage and most of the feathers he had had become dull and lifeless.

No sound could be heard from the hallway through his open door and a cold wind blew softly through the halls. Truth be told, he missed the more livelier times as headmaster. And more so he missed the chaos that the Marauders caused, it had always been...amusing to watch the pranks they pulled unfold, it added a certain entertainment value to his life, which beat being stuck behind a desk most of the day.

He sighed. Those times were gone and would never come back. James and Peter were dead, Sirius was locked away in Azkaban for killing them directly or otherwise and Remus had left the magical world.

Albus sighed again. People expected him to be some sort of impenetrable wall, unbreakable. The truth was he was just as human as anyone else, he felt pain and sorrow as every else did. He had felt a certain attachment to the Marauders and he had felt like he had lost a part of himself when James and Peter died and Sirius and Remus went away. It was probably because of this that he wanted to protect Harry, he had used the prophecy as a cover up but in truth he wanted to protect Harry as he hadn't been able to do his father and mother.

Still to this day he couldn't believe that Sirius had betrayed his friends. During their school life Sirius, James and Remus were rarely seen without each other, Peter was another story. The poor boy was so far behind in his studies that he had to spend extra time after classes to catch up, but still he tended to hover around the other three.

So they may have been in more trouble than any other recorded students in Hogwarts history but they would always know when not to take things too far. He suspected that was the work of Remus, being as he was the most sensible of the group. Mind you there was the instance with Severus, James and Remus on a full moon, that almost went too far but luckily for Remus it didn't.

Albus let his mind wander back to a few more instances with the Marauders until he was brought out of his remembrance by an Owl landing on his desk. He blinked at it for a moment, he had been too lost in his thoughts to have noticed it fly in. The Owl extended its leg and clearly wanted Albus to take the letter.

"Is this for me is it?" He asked nonchalantly before taking the letter from the owl.

Once Albus had the letter the Owl flew around the office three times before flying out of his office and away, disturbing Fawkes as it went. "A strange animal" Albus commented before reading the letter.

The letter for those of you who want to know reads:

_To Professor Albus Dumbledore: Headmaster of Hogwarts_

_I realise that I have not been in contact with you or any one else in the wizarding world for quite a while now but I must speak with you on a matter of the utmost importance. If you could see to arranging a time for me to meet you could you please contact me as soon as possible, my address is stated below. _

_Yours faithfully, Remus Lupin._

Albus put the letter down and sat back in his chair. "I wonder what is so important he must see me urgently." Albus thought. Leaning forward he took a quill and wrote his reply. After he had done this he looked to Fawkes.

"I can't send you in this state Fawkes." He said to the song bird who looked at him sadly. "Don't give me that look. You wouldn't last the flight my friend. No, I'll have to use one of the schools owls."

He stood up and took the letter with him. As he passed Fawkes he stroked his old companion before leaving the room.

The cottage of Remus Lupin: two thirty in the afternoon.

A kettle whistled, signifying the water inside it was boiled. Remus stood and walked to it. He then poured some water into a cup before returning the kettle to its original position. Tea was the drink, he much preferred chocolate but that was too expensive for him to buy. It was one of the disadvantages of being a werewolf, you could only keep part time jobs.

He sat down at a round table where a newspaper was currently open at the job pages. He placed his drink down and sat down himself. He had recently lost his job because of his transformation and had to look for another one. This was one of the reasons he left the magical world, Muggles didn't know about werewolf existing so he wasn't prejudiced against.

He had already circled a few articles of jobs that he might be interested in but it was best to cover all your options. He took a sip from his still hot drink and sat back in his chair. He knew he was worried about Sirius but short of breaking him out and becoming a criminal as well there was little more that he could do that he hadn't done. Dumbledore would know what to do once he told him, but first he had to believe him.

Remus sighed and took another gulp of his drink. At that precise moment an owl flew into the cottage. It landed in front of the werewolf. Remus took the letter that it offered him and watched the bird leave. The envelope had the seal of Hogwarts on it and, written in black ink, _To Remus Lupin_.

"That was quick" he thought. "I only sent the letter this morning."

He opened the letter and read it. It said:

_Dear Remus._

_It is so go to hear from you after all this time. I hope this letter finds you well. I am interested in finding out what this matter of utmost importance is and any time you wish to speak with me is fine. I must stress however that you could have just turned up at Hogwarts unannounced and I still would have spoken with you. I look forward to speaking with you soon._

_Your friend, Albus Dumbledore._

Perhaps Remus was reading between the lines a bit but it seemed that Dumbledore was happy to hear from him.

"Oh well, anytime he said, I think...I think I'll go tomorrow. That'll give me a chance to finish off a few things here." He sighed. "I better write a reply."

-End Chapter One-

Again it was an early hours of the morning chapter. Any suggestions on either the title or the story are welcome.

Please review.


	3. Chapter Two

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Summary: Basically the same as the first. We see what's going on with the rest of the world.

-Chapter Two-

The sun was high in the sky and the sound of children laughing and playing could clearly be heard. Everyone was having fun on this normal winter's day. Being England there was no snow but there were small amounts of ice and most of the children were wrapped up in warm clothes to protect them from the elements. Children were running around playing tag and other such childish games.

All that is except one.

A small black haired boy in too large tattered clothes stood in a small front garden of Privet Drive watching the children play through a hole in the fence. How he wished he could be among them, playing there care free games and be free from hateful and hurtful people.

How he wished he wasn't here, pulling nettles and weeds from the ground without any protective gloves. How he wished he was away from this place with someone who loved him, who cared for him, someone who wouldn't hurt him for odd things that he didn't do, someone who care for him for just being him, someone who would blame him and hurt him.

These were the thoughts of young Harry Potter. He turned away from the happy children and continued his work, knowing full well that if he didn't finish he would probably be hit and sent to his 'room' without any food. His cousin Dudley had been told to play with his friends so that was one good thing, he wouldn't be tortured by the whale the Dursleys called a son.

Little did young Harry Potter know that he was being watched. A few houses along an old woman looked out from her window at the poor young boy who the Dursleys treated so badly. They thought no one knew but she did, she had seen the bruises that Harry had and the cuts and scrapes he had from when he 'fell down the stairs'. Pushed was more like it.

She hated those people with a passion, and had since the moment she saw them. Harry was not a freak or an abomination, he was a good well behaved and extremely fearful little boy. Harry didn't deserve the way he was treated and the Dursleys didn't deserve Harry period. Their own son was a monster and could get away with murder but if Harry was to even touch a toy he would be severely punished.

She knew this, how you may ask, because she was Arabella Figg on an assignment for Dumbledore and had often babysat the boy. Minerva McGonagall had often masqueraded as one of her cats and had seen these things happen.

The poor boy deserved a loving family and a normal life, not this hell he was living in currently. Arabella had never met Harry's parents or their friends that Minerva spoke so fondly of. She did however know the story of the Potters murder and not a day went by when she saw how Harry was treated that she didn't curse Sirius Blacks name and the fact that he ever existed. If Sirius had never turned on James and Lily, Harry would have that loving home he so deserved.

She sighed and turned away from the window. What could she do, she was only a squib, no power in the muggle world, no power in the wizarding world. For now she would keep up this charade of hating the small boy and observe what happens.

Meanwhile, on a small island at an undisclosed location, in a small cell a large black dog lay on the ground looking out of a very small window above him. The dog was of course Padfoot, the alter ego of one Sirius Black.

His mind was drifting back to different, supposedly happier times. They would be happy but now all he could feel when he thought of them was sorrow. He remembered his care-free Hogwarts years and spared a sad smile at the memory of it. Him, James and Remus were all in these memories but the traitor was gone. Wormtail didn't deserve any thought...except if it was on how gruesomely he was going to kill him, if he ever got out.

That was his only purpose in life now. James and Lily were dead, Remus thought him to be a traitor and a murderer and his beloved godson Harry was probably being raised to believe the same. There was nothing he had waiting for him...if he got out.

His keen canine senses felt the approaching Dementor and he quickly changed back into a man. One thought went through his mind, 'I'm innocent. I'm Innocent. I'm innocent.' He repeated over and over in his head.

Fate can be cruel.

-End Chapter-

I'm not entirely sure if this chapter fits, anyway I will not be able to post as regularly as I want because I have a job and I only don't work the weekends so I don't get on the computer much any more. I hope I won't keep you waiting too long.

(P.S. how about this for a title, 'A Different Point of View')

Please review.


	4. Chapter Three

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Summary: Same a before really.

_-Authors Note- For those of you reading my other works I will tell you now, I get distracted easily and I will focus on different stories at different times so it will take me a while to finish. So please keep reading and bear with me._

Chapter Three-

The snow had to be at least three foot deep as Remus Lupin walked up towards the doors of Hogwarts. He was leaving large tracks in the snow as he ploughed his way forward. To the left of him there were children playing in the snow, chucking snowballs at each other, building Snowmen and basically just enjoying being in the winter wonderland.

"'Eh Remus!" He heard Hagrid call as he made towards the twenty-three year old werewolf. "Wot are yer doing ere? I aven't seen yer in ages."

Remus smiled at the friendly giant of a man. "I have a meeting with professor Dumbledore, Hagrid, but if you like I can come out and see you later."

"I'd like that" Hagrid nodded. "I'd best take yer up to the Castle." He continued before turning around and walking through the snow as if it were mere puddles of water.

At the doors they were met by Professor McGonagall he regarded them with a strict look that anyone who had spent less time with her than the 'Infamous Marauders' would regard a cold, but Remus saw fondness in that look. "Follow me." She said shortly to Remus before turning on her heel and making the long walk to the Headmasters office. Briefly Remus wondered how many times he and his friends had walked this very same route to get punishment from the Headmaster. "Chocolate Frog" McGonagall called at the Gargoyle and it moved up. "He's expecting you." She told him before walking away.

Remus took a long deep breath before stepping upon the stair and making his way up to the office of his one time headmaster. Once he came to the office door he knocked quietly.

"Come in Remus" Came the headmaster's voice. Remus opened the door and came in; he stood awkwardly for a moment. "Please have a seat." Dumbledore said and Remus happily obliged. "Now" Dumbledore said. "Would you like a lemon drop?" Remus shook his head. "Mores the pity." Dumbledore said popping one into his mouth. "Let's get straight to business shall we? What is this important matter you want to speak to me about?"

"Well sir." Remus began only to be interrupted.

"Please call me Albus, you're not in school any more." The old wizard said and Remus nodded.

"Well _Albus_ I have been thinking…about the whole Sirius thing." Remus stopped and turned his head only glancing at the older man.

"Go on." Albus prompted after a moment.

"Well I was wondering if…perhaps Sirius was innocent." Again Remus averted his eyes, not willing to look at the other.

Albus leaned further forwards as if to gaze right into the werewolf. "And what makes you think this?" he asked slowly.

Remus still averted his eyes. "Well a number of things really. I have thought of the events leading up to that day for the last few years and the things never seem to add up. Sirius and James were the best of friends and I don't really think that the promises of power or fame or wealth would have swayed him to sell James out to You-know-who. And Sirius was extremely fond of Harry and wouldn't let anything happen to him. And out of all of us Peter was most likely to join…uh…_Him_ because Peter flocked to those who had power."

"An interesting theory Remus" Albus said after a moments thought. "However unless Peter Pettigrew somehow managed to fake his own death, which would have been impossible under the circumstances, then your theory is flawed…unless of course there is something that you haven't told me."

Remus gulped, he was about to break a promise he made year ago to a dead friend and one currently imprisoned. _'Forgive me James, it for the greater good'_ He sighed and began. "Perhaps I should have told you this a while ago, namely two years ago, but I had promised James." He sighed. "James, Sirius and Peter became Animagi to help me during my transformations."

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. "Really? Yes it does sound like something James and Sirius would do but I'm surprised Peter managed to do it. What were their forms?"

Remus looked at the older man shocked slightly. "Aren't you angry or disappointed that we kept this from you?"

"Of course not my dear boy. In fact I would have been disappointed if you hadn't kept this from me. It just proves that your friends cared enough for you to try and help you in my most trying hour, and that you cared enough for them to keep their secret safe all this time. Now are you going to tell me what their forms were?" Dumbledore replied.

Remus smiled slightly. "James was a stag. Sirius was a dog and Peter was a rat."

"Ah, I see." Dumbledore stood up and walked over to Fawkes and stroked him idly. "Did you know that an Animagus form reflects a person's personality?"

Remus looked up at the old man. "I didn't know that sir."

Albus turned a sad smile towards the werewolf. "If what you have told me is true then it would put a whole new perspective on the events of that night. I shall have to confirm what you say of course, and I should really check to see if Sirius is still sane, but we would still need to find Pettigrew before we could convince the ministry. If your theory is indeed true."

"How likely is it that Sirius is still sane?" Remus asked, again averting his eyes as the guilt set in.

"I won't lie to you Remus." Dumbledore said as he returned to his seat. "Most people go mad within a year of life at Azkaban, if they last that long. However if Sirius is innocent then the chances are improved. It has been proven that people can last a number of years around Dementors if they do not have a guilty past and have a strong will."

They sat in silence for a couple of minutes before a thought entered Remus head. "Sir?" he said quietly. "If Sirius is innocent, and if he gets freed, he will want to know where Harry is. I don't think he would be happy that Harry is at the Dursleys."

"I would imagine he wouldn't be happy about the situation." Dumbledore admitted. "However what choice did I have? Werewolves, as you well know, are not allowed to raise children, Peter was presumed dead and is perhaps a traitor, I would not have the time nor the ability to care and protect a child at Hogwarts and there was no better protection from him than the blood bond." Dumbledore paused. "There is another choice if Sirius is freed. The blood bond is strong however Sirius was chosen by both James and Lily to be Harry's guardian if the worst happened. Because of this, his bond with Harry would be stronger that the blood bond is. And if Sirius was to be freed and claim the right to raise Harry then nothing could be done to stop him doing so, baring a ministry hearing of course."

Remus nodded. Yes that would be good to know, that Harry would be able to live with Sirius if he was freed. Remus had no doubts that the Dursleys were mistreating Harry, after all they hate magic and they hated Lily and James because they had that magic. Yes Remus would be surprised if Harry wasn't at least a little neglected.

Dumbledore sat back in his chair and watched the young man before him. He had a feeling that Remus had more on his mind than just Sirius Black. The few years alone had obviously affected the werewolf more than he first thought. True Remus looked extremely tired and he now sported a number of grey hairs but it appeared that he had strained emotionally as well. Throughout this meeting guilt had radiated off of Remus and he projected a very sorrowful feeling from himself. No doubt that the return of one of his 'pack' would help remove some of that feeling, if Sirius was innocent and freed, but it would be a long time before Remus truly was happy again.

"Would you like see Harry?" Dumbledore asked.

"What?" Remus blurted, the question had caught him off guard.

Dumbledore smiled. "Well I would have sent Minerva to check on him soon but, if you would prefer, you could go and spend the day with him. And, if after that day, you want to do it again I certainly would have no objections to you doing so."

Remus thought about it for a moment. He could get to meet Harry James Potter, the son of one of his best friends. He could talk to him about his parents, tell him about the wizarding world, and tell him stories about his times at Hogwarts. He could still remember Harry as a baby, so Happy and care-free. For the first time in a long while Remus felt himself smile. "I would like that."

"Excellent" Dumbledore said clapping his hands together. "Now I believe that you promised our deer groundskeeper that you would visit him after I had finished with you. So now that we have finished I suggest that you go and see him or he will be depressed for days." Remus nodded and excused himself. Just as he was leaving Dumbledore called to him. "And Remus be back here tomorrow morning, you can floo to Privet Drive from here." Remus nodded and left.

Dumbledore stood up and walked to the window of his office and gazed out to the children playing in the snow. Yes thing were becoming quite interesting around here.

End Chapter Three-


	5. Chapter Four

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Summary: If you haven't got it by now you never will.

Chapter Four-

Morning couldn't come too quickly for Remus. With the two major things on his mind he just couldn't sleep. Come the morning he would be able to see Harry, the son of one of his best friends who he hadn't seen since he was a baby. But also thoughts of Sirius plagued his mind.

The guilt that had plagued his mind for the last few days had returned stronger than ever after finding out that Sirius might not be sane. And the question was, if Sirius was sane would he forgive the Werewolf who basically sentenced him to Azkaban in the first place.

Remus had shared a room with Sirius and the others for the majority of seven years. He had known Sirius, James and Peter better than they knew themselves at times. He should have known that Sirius wouldn't betray James. Peter on the other hand would have done anything to save his own neck. If Remus had said something to Dumbledore or anyone at the time then Sirius might have been saved from Azkaban.

Remus had spent the last few years wallowing in self-pity and sorrow at the loss of his friends. He had gone from job to job, barely eating, drinking or sleeping. In truth he only just existed. But now he had a purpose, he was trying to save Sirius and no doubt save Harry as well.

The more immediate question was how had the Dursleys treated Harry for the last few years. Whatever had happened Remus would find out soon.

Meanwhile in his office sat Albus Dumbledore, his thoughts on the conversation he had had with Remus Lupin earlier in the day.

He had to admit that there was a possibility of Sirius being innocent but then again the years that Remus had suffered alone had clearly affected his lycanthropy. Perhaps that same lycanthropy had affected his emotions as well. There was no way to tell how much of Remus had changed over the years but regardless of why the werewolf thought what he did or what made him believe it Albus was going to attempt to help.

He had sent a message to Snape to come to his office after he had finished grading his students work. Albus was sipping on his hot chocolate as Snape walked calmly into the room.

"Ah! Severus!" Albus greeted cheerfully. "Please have a seat." Then almost as an after thought he added. "Lemon Drop?"

Severus sat and answered in a neutral voice. "No thank you Headmaster. Could we get straight to the point if you don't mind, I have a lot of work to get through."

Albus eyes twinkled merrily. "During the Christmas Holidays Severus?"

Snape sent a short glare at the old man. "You know how I feel about the Christmas Holidays Albus. Now can we please get to the point of the meeting?"

"As you wish." Albus turned his chair to look at the potions master. "It has recently come to my attention that we might have been…misinformed of the loyalties of Sirius Black."

Snape's face contorted into a look of disgust at the mention of Sirius Black. "You called me all the way here to discuss theories on Black!"

"Now Severus." Albus warned. "Try and keep your childish rivalries to yourself, this isn't about you or your quarrels with Sirius, Remus, James and Peter. This is about a possibly innocent man in Azkaban and perhaps the chance to save an innocent child from a life of torment."

"Life of Torment! You're not talking about that Potter Brat are you! His guardians are probably bending over backwards to his every want!" Snape snapped back.

Albus eyes twinkled again. "That act may convince others Severus; however I happen to know that you don't only think of him as James Potter's son. I happen to know that you think of him as Lily's son more than you do as James'. And I also happen to know that you have checked up on the child on occasions and you have seen what he has to go through. So tell me Severus, is this hate directed at the boy or more at the fact that you can't help him."

Snape sent a glare at the headmaster but refused to answer. In truth he had checked on the boy and had seen him be beaten for nothing, thrown into a cupboard and forced to work while his relatives do nothing and got fatter and fatter while the boy worked himself to starvation. It reminded him too much of his own childhood…not that he would ever admit that.

"Good." The headmaster said breaking out of his thoughts. "Now I have called you here to see if you can give me any information that could be of use to my investigation."

"As you know Headmaster I didn't know that much about the Orders traitor so I cannot be that much use to you n your investigation. So if that is all I will return to my work." Snape replied.

"Just a moment Severus." Albus interrupted the Potion master movements towards the exit and gazed at him intently. "I happen to know that you continued you education at the same institute as Lily, James, Remus and Sirius. Not only that but you were in the same class as them."

Snape span round so quickly that his cloak got wrapped around his body. "How could you possibly know that! You were reading my mind weren't you!"

"Of course not Severus." Albus said calmly. "Alan Quartermane just happens to be an old school friend of mine. Now let's get back to business shall we." Snape returned some-what reluctantly to his chair. "Now we know that the traitor was giving information to Voldemort since your sixth year and we also know that Sirius was not very good at keeping secrets for a long time so you, with you advanced observations skills would have been able to notice any change in his behaviour."

"There were very few changes in behaviour from them the years I saw them there. Black and Potter were still as arrogant as ever but Lily seemed to have Potter controlled and Lupin controlled Black for the most part, at least until our last year. Black and Lupin seemed to get more distant from each other, but that may have been from the fight they had over Pettigrew." Snape replied.

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow. "What was that fight about?"

"Of course I don't know the specifics of it but apparently Pettigrew had done something to annoy Lupin and Black was defending him. They called a truce after a week but they were never as close again." Snape answered.

Dumbledore fell quiet for a moment before standing up from his chair and walking to the fire. "I have some urgent matters to attend to tonight Severus and I am not sure when I shall be returning. Remus Lupin is in the castle, if I have not returned by the morning could you send him to Privet Drive." Without even waiting for an answer he had thrown some floo powder into the fire and was off to the Ministry building.

Severus was left sitting in his chair muttering curses at the headmaster's chair.

End Chapter Four-

Once again I thank my reviewers and hope that you will review again.


	6. Chapter Five

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Summary: Still the same.

First an Authors note: First I am sorry about the amount of time it has taken to get this chapter up but I hit some writers block. Secondly I fell I need to explain something about this story this is set two years after the incident at Godrics Hollow and two the best of my knowledge it make Harry four years old, old enough to still remember bits of his life with his parents, anyway on with the story.

Chapter Five

_It was a bright and sunny day at the end of May. Godric's Hollow was in a peaceful bliss that it had been in for two years. A red-haired woman sat gently swaying on a wooden swing hanging from a large oak tree. A bespectacled man sat on the ground with a toddler on his lap. The man was throwing a stick for a large Black dog, who would chase after the stick catch it and come trotting proudly back to the man, much to the child's delight._

"_Pa-fot! Pa-fot!" the child squealed as the dog planted slobbery dog kisses on him. The man laughed at the dogs antics before setting the child on the floor and pulling himself up and walking to the woman._

_The woman pulled herself from the swing and allowed herself to be pulled into a passionate kiss. A soft pop sounded and a young man with shaggy black hair was kneeling on the ground with the Baby giggling on his back._

_The man stood up and lifted the child with him. "Come on Harry." he said. "Lets go steal some sweets before they notice were gone". He turned towards the house and walked into a large kitchen. "Lets see what we've got here." He said looking through the cupboards. _

_Just as he reached in to grab something a fog flooded into the room. It overpowered the room and everything disappeared. The sound of the child crying and screams and whimpers and shouts for freedom were overwhelming._

_The just a suddenly as it came it was gone and there was silence disturbed only by the soft crying of a child. The sobbing was almost too quiet to hear. The surroundings had vanished completely and were replaced by a thick blackness in which only two things could be seen. The Shaggy-haired man and a sobbing child._

_The man turned to the child and stared at him. The boy was small and thin, he had scruffy black hair and was curled into a ball, he couldn't be any older than four. For a short while they didn't move, the child cried and the man watched._

_After a moment the man knelt beside the child and laid a comforting hand on his shoulder. The child's crying began to lessen until it finally died down to a whimper. The boy raised his head and stared at the man._

_Time seemed to stop as they stared into each others eyes. Green met blue, searching for something. _

_Suddenly the green eyes lit up with recognition and with a cry of "Padfoot!" the boy flung himself at the man, hugging him tightly. The man hesitated for a moment before hugging the distraught child._

'_This has to be a dream' Sirius thought. 'This has to be a dream because I can't be sitting here, not with Harry. Any moment now I'm going to be woken up by the dementors and this will just be another bad memory' _

"_I missed you so much Padfoot." Harry mumbled into the man's chest. "Why did you have to leave?"_

_Sirius ran his hand through Harry's hair comfortingly. "I didn't want to leave you Prongslet. I made a mistake and I so sorry that I'll never get to be part of your life. I'm so very, very sorry." Sirius rested his chin upon his godsons head and relished the thing he could never have in life, only in dreams._

_Suddenly Sirius felt a force pulling him away. He hated to leave, even if this was only a dream, he hated to leave Harry again. Another tug told him he had no choice and he began to slowly untangle himself from his Godson. "I sorry Harry, but I have to go."_

"_NO! DON'T LEAVE ME!" The child cried histerically._

"_I'm sorry Harry but I don't have a choice. If I did there wouldn't be anything that could keep from you. Just remember this Prongslet, I love you and nothing can change that. Nothing." And with that Sirius Vanished._

In a small cupboard under the stair of number four Privet Drive a small black-hair boy with a lightning-bolt scar called Harry woke up. He looked frantically around his cupboard before he broke out into silent sobs.

"Why does the world hate me?" He whispered into the dark. "I just found him and now I have to loose him again. It's not fair, it's just not fair"

And Harry lay down and cried himself to sleep.

Meanwhile in a cell in the lonely island prison called Azkaban the shaggy and scruffy young man called Sirius Black shot up in his bed. He gazed around the cell before the dream returned to him.

"Oh God!" he called in a strangled cry that quickly turned to anger. "Why do you torment me! What have I done to deserve this! Its not fair!" With and scream of anguish he picked up the food tray that had been left by the guards and flung it at the cell bars, then turning in a blind rage he threw over his decrepit bed and pushed the small bedside desk to the floor before sliding to the ground with a sob. "It just isn't fair."

End Chapter Five

Ok so it's a little short but I like how it turned out.

Please review.


	7. Chapter Six

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Summary: Still the same.

Chapter Six

Harry had been awake for hours in his little cupboard under the stairs. After his dream the previous night he found that he couldn't go back to sleep. He had curled up on his small cot and cried for hours after seeing his godfather in his dreams.

He didn't remember everything about his life before the Dursley's, only small parts of memories. He remembered His godfather Padfoot, though he was sure that wasn't his real name. He remembered a pretty red-haired, green-eyed woman and a tall dark-haired man. He also vaguely remembered a tall sandy-haired man with many cuts and scars who was always nice. However he could only clearly remember Padfoot.

So he had been justifiably distressed when he was reunited with Padfoot only to have him snatched away again…even if it was only a dream.

A sudden banging disturbed him and he turned his attention to the cupboard door. "Boy! Are you up yet! My little Duddy-kins needs all the food he can get to keep his strength up for today and if his breakfast isn't on the table in fifteen minutes you'll be in serious trouble!"

Harry heaved a heavy, silent sigh before getting up and pulling out some of Dudley's hand-me-down's and changing into them. The Dursleys were going to America for a month and Harry was going to be left with Mrs. Figg.

He opened the small door any exited the cupboard then turning into the kitchen and he began to cook the Dursleys breakfast. Soon the kitchen table was overflowing with food for the Dursleys. Harry, however, knew that he couldn't stop yet. Knowing Dudley half of the food would be gone in seconds so Harry would be under the scrutiny of his Aunt until Dudley told her he was full.

Vernon Dursley entered the room and made a scathing comment about Harry's hair as he passed. He gave Petunia a quick peck on the cheek and settled at the table while his wife went to rouse their son.

The faint sound thudding sound and rattling of metal signaled that the post or newspaper had arrived. As Harry set another plate of food down Vernon ordered him to get whatever had arrived. He walked to the front door and picked up the post and the newspaper and returned to the kitchen to give them to his Uncle.

A loud series of Thumps alerted all present the Dudley had woken up. Harry stood to the side as his relatives enjoyed their morning meal; Aunt Petunia was fussing over Dudley as Uncle Vernon commented on what a great son he was.

The door bell rang and Vernon turned abruptly to Harry. "Answer the door boy!" he demanded.

"Yes Uncle Vernon." Harry answered and walked towards the door. Harry pulled a small stool from beside the door and stood on it. He turned the door handle and opened it slightly. He got off of his stool, returned it to its place and opened the door. Before him stood a relatively tall, thin man, covered in cut, scrapes and scars. He had sandy-brown hair that was slightly graying and he had amber eyes. "God morning sir."

The man stared at him for a few minutes before shaking his head to clear it. "Hello." He said, smiling slightly. "Can I speak to Petunia Dursley please?"

Harry nodded to the man and walked to the kitchen. "Aunt Petunia. There a man at the door for you." He said quietly.

Petunia quietly scolded him for leaving a stranger at the open door. She would have complained if he had just called for her. She pushed him out of the way as forcefully as she could and stood to sneer at the boy who had hit a kitchen cupboard before walking out of the door and into the front Hallway.

"AH! IT'S YOU! YOU'RE ONE OF THEIR FRIENDS!" Aunt Petunia's screeched. "YOU'RE THE…"

"That's quite enough." The man replied. "I'm here on behalf of Albus Dumbledore to check up on Harry."

Petunia stumbled over her words and half-heartedly went to get her nephew. She grabbed Harry's aching shoulder and whispered harshly in his ear. "Do not say a word about how we treat you Boy! And don't you dare tell him about our holiday! Understand!"

Harry nodded vigorously if only to get her to release him. She thrust him at the man and quickly retreated to the kitchen. Harry and the man stood alone in the front Hallway, silently observing each other.

Finally the man knelt down to Harry's level and looked at him directly with no hate nor loathing in his eyes. The man gulped and surveyed Harry for a moment more. "Hello Harry." He said. "I don't know if you remember me but my names Remus Lupin, I was a friend of you father."

"You…you knew my Dad?" Harry asked quietly.

"Yes I knew your Father" Remus smiled slightly. "I went to school with him and your mother." He hesitated for a moment before taking a small sigh. "Would you like to come with me for a while, I could tell you a bit about your parents."

After a few minutes of hesitation Harry nodded slightly and answered. "Yes Sir."

"Excellent." Remus said and smiled. "But there's no need to call me sir. Call me Remus…or Moony." He pulled himself up from his kneeling position. "Now I'll just tell you relatives and we can go."

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Cornelius Fudge was a happy man.

He was happy because for the last two years he had done nothing and gotten paid very well for doing it. He had the easiest job in the world. All he had to do was make a few public appearances, pass a few laws and be seen to be doing something to protect the Boy-Who-Lived now and then and he could have this job for life.

The only danger to his job was currently standing in front of his office door. Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts, supreme Mugwump and Chief Wizard of the Wizengamot.

"Good morning Headmaster." Cornelius greeted as he closed the door behind them. "And to what do I owe this visit? Just a social call I hope"

"Unfortunately I am here on much more important business." Dumbledore replied as he took his seat. "I have recently come across some information that could be quite important and I need to verify it."

Many thought went through the minister's mind of this being a ploy by Dumbledore to get the ministers job for himself. He decided that he should know what the information was in order to protect his position. "Of course I'll help you in anyway I can Albus, but I'll have to know what you have found out. So if you can just tell me what you know then I'll…"

"That won't be necessary minister." Dumbledore interrupted "I wouldn't want to tear you away from your important business just to humor an old man. I would appreciate it however if you would give me permission to visit a prisoner at Azkaban."

"B-but why would you want to talk to anyone in Azkaban?" The minister replied, startled.

"I'm afraid that I cannot tell you until I have verified my theories, but rest assured that it isn't anything that should worry you." Dumbledore stared at him clearly telling him that he wouldn't answer any questions.

The minister sighed and pulled out a small card. "Very well Dumbledore. I doubt whether you'll get any answers anyway, nobody stays sane in Azkaban."

Dumbledore took the card and thanked the Minister before leaving the room apparating away.

Yes Cornelius Fudge hated that old man.

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Remus and Harry sat quietly on a bench in the park a short walk from Privet Drive. After they had walked away from the Dursleys house they had become nervous in each others presence.

"So…" Remus said and cleared his throat. "Um…how do you like living with your Aunt?"

Harry looked down to the ground. He knew what he was supposed to say but he just couldn't seem to bring himself to lie to Remus. After a long silence he said. "It's better than no where."

Remus suppressed a chuckle. "I had a feeling you would say something like that." He said. "Your mother hated spending time with your Aunt as well."

"Really?" Harry asked, his eyes glowing slightly as he looked up.

"Oh yes. From what I was told Petunia was always very jealous of Lily." Remus answered as a slight smile spread on his face.

Harry frowned and turned his face to the ground again. "What…what was she like?"

"Your mother" Remus began. "Your mother was on of the kindest people I have ever met. She was extremely understanding of everyone, always gave people second chances. She was very talented at school but she had a temper. She was also very beautiful. James, your dad, was in love with her from the moment he saw her."

A silence fell over the two again as Harry digested the information and Remus got lost in memories. Harry desperately wanted to ask more questions about his parents but wasn't prepared risk what would come from asking. If living with the Dursleys had taught him anything it was not to ask questions. Suddenly the dream from the night before came into his mind.

"…Mr. Remus?" Harry began.

"Please Harry just call me Remus or Moony if you prefer." Remus interrupted

"…Remus? What happened to Padfoot?" Harry finally asked after a long hesitation.

"…Padfoot…"Remus froze and looked away from Harry. The familiar feelings of guilt were back again. "Padfoot was unable to come. He…people think that he did something really bad ...and…and he's not allowed to see you. I'm sorry Harry." Harry nodded sadly and turned away. A thought struck Remus. "Do you remember Padfoot?"

"…Yes…" Harry almost whispered. "I…I saw him last night…I-I mean I dreamed about him." They sat in silence again until Harry asked "Do you miss him?"

"Yes Harry." Remus answered after a pause, he gained that far off look again. "Yes, I do" They sat for a moment longer before Remus stood with a groan. "I think we've sat here for long enough. What do you say we get some food?"

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Albus Dumbledore had done many things in his life. Some things he was proud of and other things he wasn't. But one thing remained constant in his life; he was always confident in what he did and always followed every decision to its end.

When ever he sat in solitude he remembered all the events of his life and reflected upon them. And the long lonely ride upon the grey ships of Azkaban gave him the perfect opportunity to do remember and reflect.

He remembered his first, and subsequently last, trip to Azkaban. It was for a situation similar to this. He had made the wrong decision and a good friend had ended up in Azkaban for many years before the truth was known. He came to take that friend for a retrial at the ministry, he had arrived just in time to save his friend from dieing.

Indeed the situation was similar. If what Remus had told him was true then Sirius Black could hold the answer to many of his problems. But first he needed to validate Remus theories and to do that he had to hope and pray that Sirius was sane and approachable.

The grey ships of Azkaban were interesting things. They didn't float upon the water but instead they moved like Dementors, freezing the water beneath them and gliding on the ice. They were long-boats of a Viking design, with their large sails and dragon figure heads. Their decks were charmed so that the passengers could not jump off of the sides but had to stay in one place until the ship reached its destination, and because they glided on magically made ice there was no chance of them sinking.

The ships reached Azkaban Harbor where the human inhabitants of the island lived. There were not many only the human guards and their families. Azkaban Island was bare and dead all except for the small community that dwelt on the coast. The Harbor town was protected by ancient wards that prevented the Dementors from entering the town.

Albus left the ship and walked up to the wardens keep. The warden was a ninety year old man called Augustus Thornily. He had been born on the island and had only left to go to Hogwarts. He looked like a skeleton with his pale skin hanging loosely from his bones, his eyes were a lifeless grey and bored a hole at any who would approach him.

"Good day Augustus." Albus greeted to man.

"Humph!" The warden replied. "There ain't nothin good abou' today professor. Wha's yer business 'ere and tell me quick, I'm a busy man."

"Of course." Dumbledore presented the card the minister gave him. "I'm here to speak to a prisoner about some information I recently received. If you could see your way to giving me a guide then I can leave you to your work."

The warden 'humphed' again. "Davies." He called to a young man. "Take the professor where ever 'e wants to go."

"Yes sir." Davies replied.

Davies led Albus up the short street to a carriage station. They entered a carriage and were taken up the trail to the ominous towers of Azkaban. Azkaban could have been as amazing as Hogwarts if not for the Dementors that destroyed to surrounding and wiped all feelings but misery and despair.

"So who are you here to see Headmaster?" Davies asked as they entered the prison.

"I want to question Sirius Black about a few things. I believe he can clear up a few things for me." He replied.

"I don't know what you'll get out of him. From what I was told he had a breakdown last night and destroyed his cell." Davies said as he led them toward a downwards circular staircase.

"Well I'll try anyway. Who knows, I might get lucky. I've always had that sort of luck." Albus said as they began their decent.

"Well good luck to you sir." Davies said as they reached the bottom of the stairs. He unlocked a door and turned back to the Professor and handed him the keys. "He's the forth cell along on the right. The Dementors won't be here for a couple of hours but you should be fine. Good luck again."

Albus thanked him and with that Davies walked away. Albus walked into the dark corridor and was instantly bombarded by the smell of vomit, urine and blood. As he walked towards Sirius cell he was almost deafened by the screams and cries of inmates that had long since lost their sanity. Flies swarmed around him as he stood outside the steel bars of the cell.

Inside the cell was a man, tall and thin, deathly pale and shaking. He was curled up in a corner facing away from the door. His damp black hair fell lifelessly over his head and blood dripped steadily from his hand.

"Oh Sirius." Albus sighed. "What has become of you child?"

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